In the craft of woodworking, it is often necessary to hold two or more pieces of wood together, such as when adjacent surfaces of the pieces are glued together. Using a clamp serves to maintain the relative positions of the pieces until the glue has dried, at which point the clamp is removed. In some instances, it is necessary to retain a plurality of such wood pieces together and the wood pieces are relatively long such that a number of clamps are required. In such cases, it is not at all unusual for the craftsman to use multiple clamps in multiple locations or positions such that the clamps are spaced apart by only a few inches. This allows the craftsman to apply somewhat equal pressure to the wood pieces along their full lengths.
As to the specific structure or type of clamp with which the assembly of the present invention can be used or incorporated, the clamp must have several essential elements. For purposes of this portion of the disclosure, it will be assumed that the type of clamp used is a bar clamp, sometimes configured as an “F-clamp” or as a “step over” clamp, the former of which will be discussed further in the detailed description of this disclosure. That is, the F-clamp and the bar clamp will be discussed here for purposes of presenting the concept behind the present invention. The F-clamp has a first end that is fixed in position and is disposed transversely at the end of a longitudinally-extending bar. In short, this is a fixed end support. Disposed along the bar is a movable end support, which is transversely-disposed relative to the bar and is movable along the bar, and typically includes a clutch mechanism for fixing the position of the movable end support along the bar. The two supports and the bar are configured as a structure that is formed in somewhat of an “F” shape—hence the name “F-clamp.”
The words “clamp,” “bar clamp,” “F-clamp,” “step over clamp” and “pipe clamp” may be used interchangeably but are to be understood to mean the same or similar device, or type of device, with which the assembly of the present invention can be used. In the preferred assembly, the fixed end support and the movable end support include protective pressure caps or pads, which pads prevent any unwanted pressure indentations or impressions being imparted into the final wood product by either end support.
That portion of the clamp between the end supports is sometimes referred to as the “throat” of the clamp. It is within this throat that the wood pieces are placed. Once placed within the throat of the clamp, the movable end support is advanced toward the wood pieces to roughly position the movable end support adjacent the wood pieces. The movable end support is further configured with a threaded member which includes a rotatable screw-like portion having a handle. The handle is permanently attached to the movable end support and typically disposed parallel to the bar of the clamp. Manual rotation of the handle serves to advance the screw-like portion of the movable end support toward the wood pieces and tighten them between the clamp end supports, all within the throat of the clamp. It is to be understood, however, that this is not the only type of clamp with which the assembly of the present invention can be used, as will be apparent later in the detailed description. It is also to be understood that use of the device and assembly of the present invention is not limited to “pieces” that are made of wood. Other materials may be placed within such clamps and such applications are fully within the scope of this invention.
By way of specific example, and supposing that a craftsman is creating a table top which has a dozen or so pieces of hardwood board in it, the boards will need to be placed side-by-side with glue placed between the adjacent faces of each board. The number of boards used would depend on the width of each board and the desired width of the table top. If the table top is designed to be four feet long, the boards would need to be at least four feet long—to allow for end trimming to square the end surface of the table later on in the crafting fabrication process. The only practical way of accomplishing this placement and gluing with a dozen or so boards, and to maintain the relative position of the boards as the glue between them dries, is to use a number of bar clamps. Each bar clamp would be positioned transversely relative to the boards and then secured in position. This would be repeated with a number of bar clamps placed at other points along the table top. The handle of each bar clamp would then be tightened, by hand, to secure the wood pieces within all of the bar clamps. It may also be necessary to place a number of clamps in an inverted position. Each bar clamp would then be secured in succession, and using the hand-tightening method, until all handles of the bar clamps are manually tightened to a desired pressure.
In this example, it can be appreciated that manual tightening, followed by manual untightening, of the bar clamp handle is both laborious and time consuming, particularly when a plurality of such clamps are used for a given wood crafting project.
In the view of this inventor, there is a need to provide an improved drive assembly that makes tightening and untightening of the clamps easier for the craftsman and that reduces the amount of time it takes to do so, particularly when a plurality of clamps are used. There is also a need for such a drive assembly whereby manual labor is reduced, which can result in a safer approach to wood clamping by, among other things, reducing carpal tunnel syndrome by overuse of the user's wrists which typically bear the brunt of efforts to tighten and loosen the clamp.